Wilson Combat 1911 Mat Tact Ext Thumb Safety

**This may sound obvious, but its always worth repeating. Make sure you unload and clear your weapon before performing any service. **As noted in many reviews here, this replacement thumb safety is oversize for custom fitting. It will not drop in (unless your gun is REALLY loosey goosey). It is of very good quality. I was replacing the broken thumb safety on my Para USA Expert. The Para's safety was of similar design but slightly longer. The Wilson's thumb lever pad was a tad shorter (1 mm maybe) and the whole unit was just "beefier" in appearance and weight compared to the stock Para. The Para's safety snapped in front of the grip safety pin. It developed a stress crack after a range session. In fact, the only real complaints I ever heard about these pistols were the MIM parts. Some companies do MIM well but for slide stops, pins and safeties, why risk it? Just my opinion. When you look at the break, you can see there was a defect inside the part. The rest of the gun is solid as hell.Before I go in to the repair, I want to state that I'm not a gunsmith. This is a repair on MY personal weapon. I am a hands-on guy who enjoys building and repairing mechanical watches, guitars, amps etc.. I'm comfortable doing delicate work with precision tools under magnification but also have a firm understanding of my limitations :-) After a lot of research, this didn't seem like it would be too involved. If it turned out to be too difficult, I was just going to stop and bring it to a gunsmith. After comparing the two parts under magnification it was obvious I would need remove a small amount of material. I worked slowly and carefully under good light, using the original part as my guide for the general fit. Only taking small amounts of metal off and constantly checking fitment. Contrary to some of the reviews here, the part I received was excellent and what I would expected from an outfit like Wilson Combat. It was evenly finished and high quality. After getting the part to the point where it would drop in and move positively from safe to fire with good resistance, I worked on polishing a couple areas that were a little gritty. This was mainly the circular relief on the front of the safety where it engages the plunger spring and the internal contact lug above the sear spring. I continued finessing those two contact areas with a very fine grit polishing pad until the safety moved with a satisfying "snick" on and off. I didn't want to get too crazy here since the primary objective is safety and making sure it stays engaged during drawing, holstering etc. This is where folks all have their preferences. Especially the hardcore 1911 folks :-) At this point, I was satisfied with the feel and operation of the safety. During the fine finishing process, I would regularly pause to do an operational check of the thumb and grip safety. Great advice from many of the instructional videos I watched.All in all this was a very satisfying and educational project. I really enjoyed "pre-gaming" on the very good instructional videos online and learning about the operational quirks of this platform. This allowed me to approach this project in a more confident (but not arrogant) manner. Patience is so important here. Especially if this is a first attempt at this repair. Use good files and technique. Work slowly, with plenty of light and magnification (really makes life easier) and you should be successful.

Many thumb safeties have come and gone in the search for the perfect one for me. And by me, I mean my hand. I have tried many brands and many styles, from ambidextrous to single; from extended to GI. None have satisfied me like this Wilson Combat thumb safety. Wilson Combat has a reputation for putting out quality products, and this thumb safety is no different. Excellence through and through. Starting with the machining, I did not see any imperfections on my product. All the machining was precise and very well done. Even the matte finish was just right. I ordered one stainless steel and one black. They come already rounded at the edges for a very comfortable feel when engaging or disengaging. Now, I am not sure if these are MIM parts, but with current CNC production standards, this should not worry anyone. Many high end companies use MIM for their parts in producing quality products. And these Wilson safeties have that “heft” of a quality part. If you have the knowledge it will be very easy to fit. No 1911 thumb safety will come as a drop in part, so you will have to fit it to your gun’s sear and hammer combination, or have it fit for you by a qualified installer. I start mine by inserting it into the detailed stripped frame first to see if it hangs up on the frame when I move it up and down, as it should move freely. With these safeties, the fit was perfect on both my guns. Dimensions were appropriately designed for excellent function with the plunger pin, hence your pin will not pop out to the side because of a thin engagement wall. There is also a slight dimple in the off position for retainment. The pin is completely captured by the safety when on or off. There is that satisfying positive click that we all want to hear and feel. Wilson Combat thumb safety...function and looks...can’t go wrong. Finally found one! Thanks Wilson!

Replaced a low mount safety with this tactical thumb safety from Wilson Combat. The size is perfect for carry and the lever is super easy to access. One caution-- it will take a while to fit this part. If you're not comfortable filing on parts to fit to your 1911, get a gunsmith to install. The pin was a tight fit in the frame and very tight through the grip safety. Sandpaper on the pin reduced the diameter just enough to fit. A small file on the sear engagement lug (careful) took care of that fit. The detent in the thumb safety as provided fit the plunger pin nicely.Wilson Combat parts are built oversized to allow for the fitting process. With a little patience, you can get a very nice, tight fit on a quality part.

Great piece! To all the reviewers that complain about "fit"... Please understand that the 1911 platform isn't a glock. Most internal mechanical parts DO require some fitting. It's just the nature of the beast so if you expect to buy parts like this that just drop in and work perfectly, don't complain if they don't There's nothing wrong with this part. It's just designed so that it can be properly fitted and work SAFELY with all 1911s regardless of where they fall out on the plusses and minuses of the spec range. This is a VERY important part, so if you're not 100% confident in your knowledge and ability to do the required fitting, then PLEASE seek a professional! If however, you have reasonable mechanical skills, are familiar with the inner workings of the 1911, can follow simple instructions, have the proper files (PUT THE DAMN DREMEL AWAY!), it's a quick and simple job to fit and have this thing working as designed in no time. MUCH better than the standard GI style safety that it replaced on my gun.